Why I'm here (a simplified explanation)

I wrote this over a month ago, but here you go. I’m posting it to explain why I’m here… mostly for people who just stumble onto this blog, as my friends probably know.

Introduction

Bienvenidos, amigos! I’ve been in Quito, Ecuador for 11 days so far, doing many a thing, and I’d love for my friends and family all over the world to be able to read about my adventures. Thus this blog, which I’d promised. I’m writing everything with you in mind, although I know I’ve read random people’s travel blogs to get ideas and information, so if you’re a stranger, hi!

“I’m feeling rough, I’m feeling raw, I’m in the prime of my life.” – MGMT, “Time to Pretend”

Why am I here?

Most of you know, but here are the answers, as best I can explain:
- I got a job teaching English to business people here.
- I got interested in TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) as a way to connect with people from other cultures, see the world, and immerse myself in a new world. I was driving back from Washington, DC with my dad in January 2009, after the Inauguration, and realized that my love of travel was worth seriously pursuing. A job that keeps you in the same place 50 weeks a year is a dreary prospect. I’d been looking for an interesting adventure (hopefully one that paid) ever since the campaign ended, but in February I decided to take a full-time job in Indy in the social services sector, thinking it would help me explore my career interests. To put it more nicely than it deserves, it was not the job for me, and it didn’t last past mid-April. I was free once again, with some money in the bank and my trusty part-time job at Bath and Body Works. (Holla!) I went to an information meeting about a TEFL certification course in May, and with an impressively non-agonizing decision, I signed up to start that weekend. I had fun, I made friends, I learned things, and I got pumped about teaching abroad. (If you’re interested in what course I took and my thoughts on it, contact me.)
- I wanted to go somewhere off the beaten path. South America always intrigued me.
- My friend Michael Rose went to Guayaquil and the Galapagos in college, and I’d always loved looking at his photos from the trip. Hammocks, reggaeton dancing, clear water, wise tortoises, confident iguanas, soft friendly seals, and FREAKING BLUE-FOOTED BOOBIES!!!!! Ecuador was immediately added to my list.

That’s pretty much it. Once I decided on Ecuador, I also got excited about learning Spanish. I’ve always wanted to speak it. And I got excited about the extreme biodiversity and the equator (I’m fascinated by weird things, like Antarctica and invisible lines on the globe like the equator). Quito is 12 km south of the equator, so I’ve fulfilled my goal to visit the southern hemisphere. Oh, and I think the letter Q is weird, so I was compelled by the idea of living in a city called Quito. I never said I wasn’t weird.

At 23 I had some catching up to do in the travel world. In 6^th grade my obsession with geography boiled over and I could list every country in the world by heart. When the 4^th and 5^th graders gave my class awards before we headed off to junior high, I got the “World Traveler” certificate… but since then I’ve stayed in North America. I’ve been to two Canadian provinces and roughly 43 of the United States- not too shabby- but hadn’t ever needed a passport. I’d had my sights on the world my whole life, so it was definitely time to get out there. To Ecuador I went!

Finally

Ah, I started this blog with high hopes! I was going to provide an in-depth look at life in another culture, blow by blow, with frequent updates. And I’ve been here six and a half weeks (47 days) and haven’t posted until now, so you can see how that worked out. There are a few reasons. The first is simple; I moved after three weeks to a place without the internet. We’re hoping to get it soon, but I’m not in charge of that effort, so I have to be patient. It’s difficult to blog when you have to rely on internet cafes most of the time. Wi-fi isn’t that common here, and I’m not too keen on taking my laptop out in public. (I'm almost the only person I know here who hasn't been robbed!) I might do it once a week, but then you have to buy something from the restaurant, so you have to analyze the cost-benefit ratio, etc., etc.

The second is that I’ve simply been busy and, often, overwhelmed. Jumping into a new place is hard, especially when you’re working and trying to make ends meet. I knew it would be, but you can’t truly prepare emotionally. At least, I couldn’t. I did the best I could and that’s all you can do. The idea of blogging was just another stressor, one more “you should.” And honestly, a lot of days I don’t have much positive to say. I’m coming to a point where I think that’s okay, where you can still make that into an interesting blog post, but that takes some effort. Some days you don’t have that energy. Blogging takes effort- at least, for me. It’s the act of summarizing some of your experiences and thoughts, and maybe even making conclusions. Certainly leaving the door open for others to make conclusions. I’m not always ready to make conclusions or hear others’ thoughts.

So eventually I decided not to worry about blogging until I felt ready. Melissa Scott (a friend from my K-12 days, now a nurse in Richmond, IN [congrats!]) gave me some good food for thought; I don’t need to worry about presenting things to others. I can just experience them and that’s okay. That might sound simple, but for me it was quite a comforting thought. She mentioned the John Mayer song “3x5”- if you know it, you’ll understand.

I guess I’m ready to blog now, at least a little. One reason is that I’m interested in writing for an organization here that aids travelers, and I need to have more writing to show for myself. I've been out of the habit for too long for someone who often considers making writing something of a profession. But more importantly, I think it’d be good for me. So expect more very shortly.

I leave you with this thought. If you hear the Doors playing somewhere, go towards the source. I can’t explain it, but nothing bad will happen, and something good often does. There’s no deep meaning or crazy background story to this. It’s just good advice.